Petals of Gold
by DarkestHourBeforeTheDawn
Summary: When Ace falls ill with a contagious illness will someone heal him? Luffy is willing to risk his own life to save a boy who hates him, but will Ace do the same for Luffy? R&R (Set when Ace and Luffy are kids around episode 493- anime)
1. Sacrifice to Endure

_One Piece and the characters used in this story do not belong to me. All rights go to Eiichiro Oda :D_

This fanfic is dedicated to OraueTwins! Hope you like it :3

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The burning sun had already risen up in the clear pastel blue sky when Ace opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that everything was blurry and he could barely tell which room he had woken up in. His eyelids felt unbearable heavy like they could flicker shut at any moment like a broken light bulb. Ace ignored this hindrance and shakily tried to stand up, but dizziness took over him and he collapsed back on the floor.

_What's wrong with me this morning? _Ace thought hard but couldn't think of a reason why he felt like this.

The door to the place where he slept was suddenly flung open and Dadan stood there, her large figure blocking the morning sunlight from blinding Ace. Her sharp eyes looked over Ace and noticed his tired features and sweaty face. Dadan also couldn't ignore the distinctive rashes around the boy's neck... It was _that_ infection.

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Several years ago, there had been an outbreak of a new disease that hit Foosha village and the lands around it. It had been severe and took doctors in the village many months to find out a cure. The problem was that the disease was highly contagious, so examining the patients would be harder without the disease spreading and the doctors running the risk of catching it themselves. Fortunately, later, doctors made precautions and found a cure for the dangerous disease that had thrown so many villagers into a life threatening state. Crushed petals from a marigold flower. It had seemed like a strange medicine at first but thousands of marigolds were plucked from the surrounding golden fields and an antidote was made from the pollen. The village became immune after taking the new medicine and the disease had been conquered in Foosha village but on Mount Corvo and beyond the disease was still a threat... The only hope was remaining marigolds...

* * *

"Don't come near! I'll catch it!" Dadan exclaimed and shut the door again. Ace vaguely heard muttering from the other side of the door but his hearing was already becoming fuzzy.

"What would Garp say?" Dogra cried

"He won't know! We won't tell him!" Dadan yelled, desperately trying to convince herself of that.

Luffy woke up after the late morning commotion and his eyes searched the room, finally landing on Ace who lay on the floor. Luffy noticed that Ace was struggling to breathe and he almost through instinct, ran to him.

"Hey Ace! Are you okay?" he said asked worriedly, completely unaware of his contagious condition.

Ace thought that he could hear a voice and felt someone shake his arm, but he didn't know who it was.

"Ace! Ace! Wake up, are you sleeping? Can't be we friends?" Luffy called, shaking Ace's weak body and slowly getting more worried when he got no response. Ace's breathing was still steady however faint and sounded strained. Luffy didn't know what to do, he had never been in a situation like this before. He had never seen Ace like this before.

Suddenly he heard the bandit's voices on the other side of the door.

"What are you expecting me to do? We don't live in Foosha Village! We can just go get some marigolds and then have our problems solved! If we go in there then we'll all just catch what he's got! How would that help?" Dadan yelled angrily

"We could go down to the village and ask for the medicine or a doctor?" Magra suggested

"Haven't you forgotten that we are _bandits?_"Dadan snapped "We can't just waltz down there, everyone's terrified of us except for the Mayor and Makino!"

There was silence in the house as the bandits realised that Dadan was right.

"Look I understand what you're trying to say" Dadan softened her voice slightly "But there's nothing that we can do. I doubt that there would even be any marigolds left out there... If we had vaccines from Foosha up here then we wouldn't be in this situation."

Luffy heard the word marigold and a vague image of a golden flower flashed in his head. The boy left Ace's side and placing his straw hat firmly on his head, he dashed out of the room. He easily slipped past the bandits without them noticing due to his small size and the tension of the conversation. He kept running, keeping his mind fixed on the flower, desperately hoping that he would find one.

Ace shivered, the uncontrollable movement sent painful jabs down his body. The boy couldn't hear anything now and he was quickly losing all feeling in his body. He suddenly violently coughed and a trickle of crimson escaped his mouth.

Luffy went onto his hands and knees in the very green meadow. There was no shimmer of gold in sight amongst the stems. The boy frowned and continued desperately searching .

"It's no good... I can't find one" Luffy said breathlessly to himself. He felt different from normal, like pressure softly pressing against his chest. He ignored it however when he saw in the distance a tiny flash of orange. Luffy got up and ran to it. A small flower was tucked behind thick grass and it looked exactly the same as what Luffy had pictured in his head. He gently plucked the marigold from the ground, put it safely in his pocket and began to run once more. He was breathless and tired and the pressure against his body was getting tighter...

_I doubt anyone would would care if I die _Ace thought

_Sabo would notice but... I still don't know if it was good that I was born... I want a chance to find out!_

Ace thought determinedly and tried to get up once more. But moving his body sent shocks of pain all over him. It seemed that even with his new found resolve, his weak body still ignored him and if it were possible he was getting weaker.

Luffy ran back into the house out of breath from the speed he had sprinted at.

"Where have you been?" Dadan demanded, but Luffy ignored the large woman and rushed to the room where Ace was still sprawled on the floor. Dadan muttered irritably but walked back to the other bandits gathered in the corner.

Luffy was shocked by Ace's condition, he had got so much worse since he had left. Luffy was terrified... The older boy that he looked up to and always regarded as the strongest was now clinging onto life with utter desperation. Luffy was probably the most inexperienced seven year old when it came to first aid in fact he had never seen anyone as ill as Ace was before. But when the boy felt Ace's burning forehead with his hand, his instinct was to cool it down with something.

_Well snow is cold so I could try finding some, _Luffy thought to himself but then remembered that the season was spring and there wouldn't be any snow on the ground. The boy frowned and his eyes subconsciously scanned the room for cold things when he noticed a bucket of rags and water in the corner of the room. Luffy rushed over to the buckets and soaked the dry linen in the cold water. He quickly applied the dripping rag to Ace's forehead and noticed his face relax a little.

_Oh yeah... the flower thing! I need to make the mystery medicine, _Luffy thought _I could give him the flower whole but that wouldn't taste too great... _

This amount of thinking was already hurting Luffy's head, and Luffy's chest still felt tight and he found it harder to breathe than usual.

_Maybe I should mush it up? _Luffy finally thought after a few minutes. Luffy couldn't think of anything better to do so he picked up on of the small smooth stones that lay near the door and crushed the sunny coloured petals until they became like sticky honey stuck at the bottom of the bowl. The amount of medicine that he would be giving Ace seemed tiny so Luffy added some water to the mix and stirred the marigold 'slush' with a stick and slowly the marigold petals were no more and a golden liquid filled the bowl.

Luffy began to feel dizzy for some reason but he still managed to prop the bowl against Ace's cold lips without spilling any of his precious medicine.

"I really hope this works..." Luffy whispered as he was struggling to speak as loud as usual

_But what is wrong with me? _The boy thought in confusion and clutched his head as it started to throb painfully and the pain crawled all the way to his heart.

Ace managed to drink whatever the boy had given him. It was a slow process but Ace was beginning to feel better and he comfortably lay on his back and rested finally with less pain than he had, had to endure before.

For Luffy however it was a completely different story. Dizziness had already captured the boy in its clutches and he could no longer stand up without swaying. The room began to merge in his vision and he felt his face burn with heat yet freeze with an icy chill. Luffy's body collapsed to the floor

_What does contagious mean?_ Luffy thought suddenly remembering what Dadan had said but could no longer think about it as his eyes rolled to the back of his head and the boy lost consciousness.

Half an hour later, Ace woke up and got to his feet wearily. He felt odd... not uncomfortable, in fact he felt relaxed but... disorientated. He felt like he had missed out something gravely important. Ace rubbed his head and glanced at the floor. Near him lay Luffy who was sweating and his breathing sounded accelerated... He seemed to be in pain. But Ace didn't care.

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**A/N There's the first chapter up! This is my first FanFiction that I have uploaded! Please no flames but I welcome constructive criticism :)**


	2. The Decision to Save a Life

Ace walked casually out of the room leaving Luffy on the floor.

"A-Ace! You're better?"

"How?"

"Who?"

Dadan and the other bandits threw questions at Ace who stood quietly until a glare darkened his face and he replied,

"How should I know" he muttered and walked past the group and out of the building and finally felt the sun on his face. The sky was bright blue with only a few reluctant clouds drifting above him. Ace felt so different some how... the grass was a hue more fresh than he had seen for days and the chirping of birds was something Ace rarely ever heard. Today was different.

Ace began to run towards the forest and hoped to meet up with Sabo if he was still waiting for him. He dashed past countless dimly lit trees and eventually reached a more open space where a large tree stood solitary in the centre. Sabo wasn't sat on its branches but as Ace approached the large trunk he noticed a small piece of paper pinned to the bark.

_-Hope you are alright, I'm out hunting in the usual place-_

Ace began to run again towards where Sabo would usually hunt, to the fields that scraped the border of Gray Terminal.

Luffy coughed weakly, drops of blood dripped from his mouth and his chest felt like it was on fire. He tried to sit up but he couldn't move his exhausted body, Luffy felt like he was losing everything. Luffy's normally rosy face was fearfully pale and every breath he took shot shudders through his body. He felt like he was dying.

_I don't want to die!_

_I don't want to die!_

_I don't want to die! _

Luffy's desperation coloured his thoughts and he was beginning to feel like his life was trickling away

_I still haven't given Shanks his hat back... I still haven't become the Pirate King! _Tears threatened to lace Luffy eyes but Ace flashed in the boys head

_Ace doesn't like crybabies _Luffy remembered and blinked and forced the drops of sorrow back.

_Is this how Ace felt? Is he better now? I hope he's safe... _Luffy thought and managed to smile where he lay.

Ace finally saw Sabo leant against a small tree near Gray Terminal. A wild boar that he had killed lay unmoving beside him. Sabo noticed Ace running to him and called,

"Hey Ace! You came! Where were you this morning?"

Ace slowed to a stop near his friend and paused to think what he would say.

"I... er Dadan forced me to do housework" Ace lied

"That sounds pretty rough, did you actually agree to do it?" Sabo asked curiously

"No, that's why I took so long"

"I see" Sabo grinned. The two boys headed off to hunt their next prey and were lucky moments later to find a crocodile in the river near them and together Ace and Sabo defeated it with their metal poles gripped in their hands tightly.

"Hey Ace, I heard that there was a disease going around in Gray Terminal so we should probably stay by Mount Corvo for a while" Sabo said whilst sitting down by the bank

"What disease?" Ace asked slightly suspicious.

"I don't know what it's called" Sabo replied "But it's really contagious! I saw a load of people collapsed on the ground, people are dying from it!"

Ace knew by now. It was that very same disease that had haunted his body last night and paled his face when the sun rose. There was only one thing that remained that Ace didn't understand. How was he healed? How was he alive? If this disease was contagious...

Then it dawned upon him. Ace thought back to when he woke up that morning and saw Luffy lying on the floor,

_He never is just lying on the floor... he's always chasing after me or calling my name _Ace thought and he finally realised that Luffy had saved him.

_That idiot! I never asked him to heal me! Why was he so reckless?_

"Hey Sabo, Do you mind if I head back? I just remembered something" Ace said offhandedly.

"Yeah... that's fine I guess" Sabo said surprised and slightly suspicious of Ace's sudden change of attitude.

Ace turned away from his friend and began to run now, sensing the urgency in the air. He had a bad feeling...

_At least Ace is okay... I d-did something right _

That was the last thought that lingered in Luffy head before unconsciousness snatched him and plunged him into a numb state of uncontrollable sleep once more. It hurt... so much. But Luffy didn't shed a tear.

Ace burst through the door and finally reached the small boy lying limp on the floor. Luffy's usual smile was absent and in its place his face was creased in pain.

"Hey are you alright?" Ace asked, still holding back his emotions since he still disliked Luffy. But after getting no response he decided to call him by name.

"Luffy! Wake up! You're being a wimp! You can't be this ill, you only caught the illness from me this morning" Ace shook Luffy's weak body roughly and the boy choked out blood.

"Blood?" Ace noticed with shock "This isn't a joke is it?"

The eerie silence answered the freckled boy's question. Ace could see a small bowl in Luffy's hands and could see a cloth near where he had slept. He noticed harsh rashes around Luffy's neck and when Ace carefully felt Luffy's forehead with the palm of his head it was burning hot.

_He's got a fever!_ Ace thought and reached for the cloth that Luffy had used to help him and re-soaked it in water. Ace carefully placed the dripping rag on Luffy fiery hot forehead that was wet with sweat.

"What am I even doing? It's his own fault he's ill! He could have just minded his own business!" Ace muttered aloud

"A...A-Ace" Luffy whispered, pain staining his faint weak voice.

"Luffy... you're awake, are you alright?" Ace asked surprised. Ace didn't want to admit it but he was relieved to hear the boy's voice.

Luffy couldn't hear Ace. He knew that he had said something since Luffy could see, through his blurred vision, Ace's lips moving. Luffy desperately tried to stay awake but his eyelids were drooping and his throat felt like it was closing up.

"Luffy? Say something!" Ace shouted, slightly irritated.

The older boy didn't expect a reply now but he heard Luffy's weak voice one more time

"I'm s...orry A-Ace" then Luffy's eyes fell shut and his consciousness had forsaken him once more.

_It will be my fault if he dies won't it? Doesn't have parents? Friends? Somebody would miss him wouldn't they? He's different from me...But why does he care about me? Why did he risk his own life for me? _

But in that moment Ace realised that he had never seen Luffy with anyone... he had always on his own... always chasing him.

_Is he like me? _Ace thought and almost instinctively he stood up and tried to find something that would help the boy. Ace's eyes met with messy remains of an orange and yellow flower. This somehow reminded him of the liquid that he remembered being given that morning. Ace was still convinced that the memory was a dream, but Ace remembered that gold... that same hue that had slipped down his throat and saved him.

_Is this how Luffy healed me?_

_It's a marigold... I remember the old fields of marigolds, but the marigolds were picked. How did Luffy find this? Maybe there are still some left! I might still have a chance!_

Ace didn't have time to think about it. He quietly left Luffy's side and stood up. Luffy coughed again and Ace could see him flinch at the pain but he wasn't crying.

_He's gotten stronger than before... Wasn't he a crybaby? What made him change?_

Ace turned his back

"I'll come back soon. Just... Just don't die okay?" Ace murmured.

Somehow Luffy had gained his respect by the fact he didn't shed a tear. Ace didn't want this boy to die any more. Ace ran out of the door back towards the forest with the hope of petals of gold that would save Luffy.

Luffy felt in his heart like someone had spoken to him but it was strange since he couldn't hear or see. He was certain though. The voice had cut through his unconsciousness and reached his heart. However knowing someone was speaking to him and was worried for him still didn't remove the thought that still terrified him. That he would die.

_No I won't die! _The raven haired boy fought against his fear. Another cough resounded through his body that felt like a thousand knives piercing his heart. He still didn't cry.

_A-Ace wouldn't w-want me to c..ry _

Ace sprinted up the hills desperate for a glimpse of an amber flower. His eyes scoured the grass for petals of the sunshine but found none. All the marigolds had been picked now

_There has to be another marigold! Luffy found one! Isn't there even one left? _

Ace didn't know what to do. His time was running out and the only thing that could cure Luffy was now out of his grasp. Ace dragged his feet across the ground dejected after searching field after field but finding nothing.

_I don't even know any more. I used to hate that kid... he was so happy and looked so weak, but... somehow he's changed in only a few hours. I feel like I can't let him die! I promised to myself that I would live life without regrets. Why do I have this feeling like I need to protect him like a brother. That if I let him die I will break that promise. _

Ace decided to walk back via Gray Terminal to see if Sabo was nearby. He didn't fear the disease that Sabo warned still lingered there for he had taken the medicine and was immune to it.

Rubble piled high to the sky and the horizon was obscured by misty smoke which darkened the air. Many men scavenged for anything of worth around the area but there was a space where no one was searching. A large scrap of metal was propped against a broken house where underneath it Ace could see a shimmer of gold. He ran to it and lifting it, to his surprise, there was a marigold growing out of the ground still fresh even though the sun's light had not hit its petals for a few days. Ace carefully plucked it and started to run, faster... faster...

_There's still hope!_

He finally reached Dadan's house and burst into the room where Luffy lay.

Luffy's condition was awful. Perhaps he had reacted so badly because of his young age but either way the young child looked barely alive, even almost peaceful except for the pain clearly reflected on the pale features of his face.

Ace ran to him and crouched by his side

"Hey Luffy! Luffy! Can you hear me? Luffy!"

There was no reply. The only evidence that the boy was alive was shallow breathing that sounded like broken whispers that Ace could hear faint against his ear.

Ace remembered the marigold and began to crush the petals into a mix and, like Luffy, he added water to give it moisture.

Luffy was running out of breathes but just before the boy breathed his last, Ace held the bowl to Luffy's dry lips and the golden liquid slipped down his throat.

"Luffy?" Ace asked the unmoving boy. He somehow expected Luffy suddenly to jump up and go back to his happy nature... Ace expected him to smile now. It had been too long.

But Luffy wasn't breathing.

Ace quickly leant his ear by Luffy's mouth and he felt no whispering breaths against his cheek.

_He's not breathing!_

Ace placed his hand gently on Luffy's chest to check for a heartbeat and to his relief there was still a faint thud.

Ace provided the boy with air desperately, waiting for the medicine to take effect in Luffy's body.

Minutes past and Luffy finally gasped for air on his own and Ace leaned back exhausted.

"Luffy? Are you alright?"

There was silence again. Luffy had shut his eyes but managed to rasp faintly,

"A-Ace..."

* * *

Luffy's obsidian eyes slowly opened and everything was blurred. Late afternoon sunlight forced itself through cracks in the wood around the house leaving pools of lights in the room. Luffy saw a figure crouched over him shaking him gently,

"Luffy! You're awake!"

"A...Ace! You're better!" Luffy exclaimed, suddenly sitting up and wincing slightly but a smile shining on his face.

"Well that's thanks to you..." Ace grinned but then paused "But why did you save me?"

"Because I want to be friends!" Luffy said determinedly

Ace didn't say anything for a few seconds and Luffy glanced at him worried that he had said something wrong "I don't want you to die!"

Ace's eyes widened in shock

"W-What did you say?"

"I d-don't want you to die Ace! I want you to live!" Luffy stammered

"Luffy... Thank you" Ace murmured, he didn't say any more. Nothing more needed to be said, the joy that coloured his ebony eyes already told Luffy that he wanted to be friends without Ace needing to put his emotion into words.

Luffy's stomach growled and he looked up at Ace,

"Can we get some food I'm starving!"

Ace's stomach quietly rumbled too and he grinned embarrassedly

"That sounds good!" Ace replied smiling and he grabbed Luffy's hands and gently pulled him to his feet. Luffy wobbled on his feet but Ace steadied him.

"WAIT! Where's my hat?" Luffy gasped.

But moments later the raven haired boy felt the straw hat being placed on his head

"On your back" Ace smirked as he put the hat on Luffy's head.

"Thanks Ace!" Luffy grinned widely

"No problem!"

The two boys walked out of the room, out of the house and breathed the fresh air once more. A whisper of wind flew through the air and carried a single petal that eventually landed on Luffy's straw hat. A Petal of Gold... from the flower that saved them both.

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**A/N Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed my story and feel free to review - I would love to hear what you thought of my fanfic! xx ;3**

_Kakashi-Sensei48_


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